


The Matter of Foresight

by goingtothetardis



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M, Introspection, Nine runs into Ten/Rose, Nine's POV, Romance, Telepathy, Time Loop, Very not explicit reference to sexual encounter, dw secret santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-06
Updated: 2017-01-06
Packaged: 2018-09-15 03:46:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,832
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9217187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goingtothetardis/pseuds/goingtothetardis
Summary: The Doctor and Rose are off on an adventure, and during a moment of separation from Rose, the Doctor runs into his future. It changes everything he thought he knew about his life and gives him a certain kind of hope he never thought he'd experience.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts).



> This is a (pitch hit) DW Secret Santa gift for Faithosaurus-fics on tumblr! She prompted: "Ten/Rose, Nine/Rose - Nine sees a future event with Ten and Rose"
> 
> I'm so sorry this took so long. The prompt just grabbed me! It's one I've read a few times and always enjoy, and I was intrigued by the idea of writing my own version. The story became a little more complex (and introspective heavy) than I was expecting, but nevertheless, I hope you enjoy it! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!! (A bit late.)
> 
> And a HUGE thank you to Jeeno2 and Chiaroscuroverse for their honesty, feedback, and beta. And to Crazygirlne for helping me out with the planet name. ;)

The Doctor is brooding, slouched against a coral strut in the console room, annoyed at his tumultuous thoughts. 

It’s a nearly constant argument inside his head these days. The wayward part of him that never quite fit in with the rest of the Time Lord society – the rebellious bit that has always guided him on the path less traveled – tells him to give in to his desires and _be_ with Rose, to let down those barriers he’s built so tightly around himself and allow himself to simply... be someone new with her. 

_Someone better._

But the other part of him cowers behind the centuries of uptight rules and traditions of his people that are so ingrained into his very being, those laws that define the _essence_ of being a Time Lord, a protector of Time. 

And it’s an easy escape, a convenient failsafe when things get a little too close with his charming companion who has the most gorgeous (and distracting) smile all his eyes have ever seen. 

It’s simple to put on a front in her presence, a gruff exterior full of Time Lord impressiveness and charm. He does his best to ignore his suspicion that she sees right through it and knows him far more intimately than he deems acceptable. He pretends he doesn’t know, and she likely follows suit. 

He growls and shakes his head, pushing off the strut to pace around the console, absentmindedly fiddling with switches and controls. Feeling like a pubescent youth with an all-consuming crush, he huffs and grabs the monitor with more force than necessary, determined to rid these bloody thoughts from his mind through one mode of distraction or another. The TARDIS grumbles at him, knowing his conflicted thoughts but still annoyed at his carelessness, and shocks him around the edges of the screen. 

With a yelp, he sticks two fingers in his mouth and glares at the console. A muffled giggling erupts behind him, and the Doctor closes his eyes. _Of course_ , she chooses to show up now. The TARDIS telepathically smirks.

“Alrigh’, Doctor?” Rose asks, voice heavy with amusement. 

He grunts in reply.

“You know, if you’re nice to the TARDIS, she’ll be nice back.” Rose walks up and softly strokes the console. His ship has the audacity to brighten with pleasure and responds eagerly to Rose’s touch. 

With a sigh, he turns to Rose with a wry grin. Even his ship is under Rose’s spell. “She was being difficult,” he explains. 

Rose smiles, tongue tucked in the corner of her mouth, and laughs. “Somehow I doubt that, Doctor. She probably got tired of listening to all those thoughts always mucking about your oh-so- _impressive_ mind.”

(She’s far too perceptive for her own good.)

The Doctor doesn’t bother with a response, and when he turns back to the monitor, he hears Rose pat the console and murmur words of sympathy. “I can hear you, you know,” he grumbles.

He can almost _feel_ Rose’s answering smile as she walks to the jumpseat and plops down. 

“So where’re we off to today? Is there a government to overthrow? Kittens to rescue from trees? A planet of the chips to discover?” Rose asks. 

“I was thinking of Trancarsilon Prime, the most popular market planet in the Ergraxillian galaxy. I need a few parts for the TARDIS, and there’s a shop there that might have what I need. I think you’ll like it,” the Doctor explains.

Rose wrinkles her nose. “What, the parts shop?”

“Nah, that’ll just take a few minutes. The rest of the planet.”

“The markets? For shopping?” The hopeful tenor in her voice is hard to miss. The Doctor has found that while shopping in alien markets is often tedious on his own, it’s an entirely new experience with Rose, and he enjoys the experience through her eyes. But then, that applies to almost everything he’s ever done since Rose began traveling with him. He’s constantly amazed at the fresh perspective and life she brings to the things he’s always considered ordinary and mundane, especially since the Time War.

“For shopping,” he replies with a nod and begins his practiced dance around the console, flipping switches and levers to take them to Trancarsilon Prime.

**& &&&&**

Several hours later, the Doctor walks away from the parts shop, important TARDIS parts procured. Sensing her boredom while he bartered for the hard to find items, he’d sent Rose off to explore on her own. They’d agreed to meet back at the TARDIS in a few hours time.

He’s a little early and considers finding a gift for Rose in one of the many shops in this particular quadrant of the market. However, as the Doctor meanders into a quieter street corridor thinking about what to get Rose, an uncomfortable niggle of the Doctor’s time sense grows more pronounced. Earlier, he’d shrugged off the sensation, assuming it was interference from the variety of alien signals and technology cluttering the black market of the planet, but now, away from the hustle and bustle, he realizes the feeling is the echo he experiences when in the vicinity of another of his incarnations. 

The Doctor’s eyebrows furrow as he turns his senses inward to investigate the sensation. He’s been here before, sure, but he made sure to land in a different decade than his other selves. And he knows the TARDIS dislikes the time sickness she experiences when in the company of another version of herself. _So why is there another him here?_

He’s pulled from his thoughts when familiar voice shouts his name. _Rose._

The Doctor sprints toward her voice and frantically follows it into a narrow alley. Rose is pressed up against a smooth stone wall, and her legs are wrapped around a tall, skinny bloke with wild brown hair. 

A hot, burning jealous anger burns through his veins, and without noticing that Rose is… different… and that she’s enthusiastically participating in the activity, the Doctor stalks forward toward the amorous couple. He places a hand on the other man’s shoulder and jerks him back from Rose, who stumbles inelegantly back against the wall with a gasp. 

“Get your hands off her,” he growls, holding the man up with a handful of shirt. Rage blinds him to the obvious, his own eyes staring back at him in defiance, and it takes Rose calling his name several times in exasperation for him to release the other man with a shove and turn around to face her. 

Only then does he notice all the things about her he missed before. Breathing heavily, his eyes instantly take note of Rose’s shoulder length hair and the silky sundress she was most definitely not wearing the last time he’d seen her. He breathes in a familiar scent, one that he associates with Rose, and he’s struck with the sudden clarity that it’s the alluring scent of her arousal. No wonder it drives him to distraction. “Rose?” he asks, his voice cautious and untrusting. 

Rose stares at him in shock, like she’s seeing a ghost, and a voice drawls out next to him. “You know, for a Time Lord, you’re a bit dim. Oh, that’s rude, isn’t it, Rose? But it _is_ myself I’m talking to, so I suppose it’s okay. Mind you, I was a bit rude interrupting us just then, all icy rage and brute force. Was that what–”

The Doctor holds up his hand, and the other bloke, _himself_ , apparently, stops talking. “You’re me.”

“Took you long enough. _Blimey_ ,” the other him mutters. 

Turning his attention to his other self, one he’s not yet acquainted with, he studies the man. This future him is pretty in all the ways he’s not: tall and lanky, fit and young. Really, it’s all he’s ever wanted to be for Rose, and–

The implication of what he’s interrupted finally hits him, and he gapes between his future self and Rose. “You’re… we’re…” Words fail him. “Together.” He finally manages to come up with one word. 

Future him grins idiotically at Rose, like she hung the moon and all the stars in the universe, before pulling on an earlobe and nodding in affirmation. With his downward look, he realizes all his bits are still hanging out in the air, half hard and eager to return to prior activities. Coughing awkwardly, he hastily tucks himself back in his trousers. The Doctor swallows a smirk before focusing on Rose. 

She’s standing quietly against the wall, eyes watery with emotion. “Doctor?” It’s not really a question as she steps forward and places her hand against his chest, feeling the steady thrumming of his heartbeats under her palm. “How are you here? I thought you were… gone...”

The concept of regeneration is hard for most to understand, especially humans. It’s not a subject he’d even thought to bring up with Rose, not even considering it might be relevant during their time together. Clearly he’s wrong, however, and the fact that Rose has remained with him through the process, well– He’s known she was special from the beginning. 

“It’s a bit tricky, this life I live, Rose,” he explains softly. “I’m here, now, but so are you. _My_ you.” 

Rose’s eyes widen in panic, but he puts his hand on her arm to still her anxiety. “It’s fine, you’re not going to see this. No reapers. We’re meeting back at the TARDIS.” She sighs in relief. 

“But I am, Rose.” She looks at him, brows furrowed in question. “Gone, that is. This me. Don’t know how or when, but that pretty idiot is proof enough for me.” Rose laughs through the tears that stream freely down her cheeks. “I exist throughout time and space, and sometimes, only very rarely, I run into one of my other selves. It’s not usually this… _eventful_.”

Rose turns to future him. “How come you never told me about this? I remember this trip, I think. You needed TARDIS parts, yeah?” 

Both Doctors nod in affirmation. 

“I’ll have to forget this, won’t I?” He knows the answer, doesn’t need to ask the question, but it’s a way of answering Rose’s question. 

Future him nods. “The memories only returned when you,” he sniffs indignantly, “pulled me away from Rose. By the way, was that really necessary?”

“Yes,” he answers, glaring at the other him. He remembers the sight of Rose wrapped so intimately around another man, and despite the fact that the other man is himself, he can’t stop the flash of jealousy that blazes to life again in his hearts. Attempting to shove that out of his mind, the Doctor focuses on Rose. 

She’s beautiful, flushed and happy, and he takes a moment to study the changes in her. Her hair is shorter, and it’s styled it in loose waves. The rest of her is different, somehow. Trim and lean from running to and from all manners of adventures, and there’s a subtle difference in her eyes he didn’t notice until now. Flecks of gold, something that reminds him of Time, glitter mysteriously within their depths. Beyond the physical, she holds herself with more confidence, a sureness about herself, about her place by his side on the TARDIS that she’s only gained through months – years – as a time traveler. 

He’s enthralled with who she’ll become, and he opens his arms to her, crushing her in a fantastic hug when she surges forward and wraps her arms desperately around his torso. He breathes in the scent of her, relishing this moment, and he sighs in annoyance when future him clears his throat from the side. Of course _he’s_ jealous. 

The Doctor holds onto Rose a moment longer, and when he releases her, watching as she returns to the other Doctor and entwines her fingers with his, he knows it’s time to leave them behind. “It’s time to return to my Rose, I think,” he says. 

As he turns to leave, Rose calls out. “Doctor?”

“Yes, Rose?”

She glances quickly at her Doctor and takes a deep breath. “I know you have to forget this, yeah? But if there’s some way you can remind yourself, or I dunno, make yourself aware of it somehow, leave a note to just let things with us happen naturally. Stop fighting it, Doctor. Stop fighting _us_ and it’ll happen when it’s supposed to. I promise. We’re proof.” And then she sends him a smile radiating with love and affection, one he can’t help but return. 

He turns and walks quickly out of the alley, turning right at the end to make his way back to his TARDIS.

**& &&&&**

Rose leans against the side of the TARDIS in the distance, and the Doctor increases his pace, anxious to be reunited with his Rose. Well, with Rose. Not his Rose. Not yet.

As he approaches the TARDIS, the Doctor’s mind is filled with the presence of his future self and… Rose. He knows it’s her, instinctively, and he stumbles slightly in shock at the unexpected (but not unwelcome) intrusion in his mind. Rose and the other him clearly resumed their amorous activity after his departure, and to his astonishment they share with him the moment they topple over the edge together. The Doctor staggers back a few steps, overwhelmed not only by the rather brilliant secondhand sensation of dual orgasms spreading through his veins, but also by the revelation that future him must be bonded with Rose. 

_To the future_ , Rose whispers, and they gently pull themselves from his mind. 

The Doctor opens his eyes and focuses on Rose. She hasn’t noticed him yet, with her eyes closed and head tilted up to catch the light of the suns of this planet, and he runs the last several meters to reach her. 

“Rose,” he says, voice low and thick with emotion. 

She jumps away from the TARIDS and beams at him, her tongue dancing in the corner of her mouth. “You know, Doctor. For a Time Lord, you’re not very good at being on time.” Her smile falters when she sees his face, and she scrutinizes him carefully. Eyes widening slightly and mouth making a little “o” of surprise at what must be the heat in his eyes and his flushed face, she asks. “Is everything okay, Doctor?” 

The Doctor threads his fingers through Rose’s and smiles. It’s a rare smile he reserves specifically for Rose, and this one is filled with genuine joy and hope. “Yeah. Yeah, I am, Rose. I really am.” His heartbeats increase at her responding smile.

And he is. For once in his life, he’s actually okay. This unexpected encounter today, one he knows had been for his eyes only, has calmed the storm in his mind, stilled the chaotic conflict of doubts and desires regarding his feelings for Rose. 

It’s not quite yet the time for the physical manifestation of a relationship with Rose, this he knows, but maybe he’ll be able to let down some of the ironclad barriers he’s built against the world, against _her_ , and allow Rose to be a part of his life in ways he’s never allowed another companion before. 

As he unlocks the door and they step inside the TARDIS in companionable silence, the future shines bright and golden in front of the Doctor. With his obvious regeneration at an undetermined point in his near future, it’s clear the timeline in front of them isn’t without challenges and adventures gone awry, but what he’s seen – what he’s _experienced_ – It gives him hope he never thought possible.

Rose settles on the jumpseat, chattering excitedly about her exploration of the market, and the Doctor takes a moment to lock up the memories of the day. He infuses a level of awareness through his subconscious that will allow him to feel remnants of this hope he feels so deeply now to allow for the future he’ll one day have with Rose, however much of a mystery that future is.

**& &&&&**

The Doctor creases his brow and steps back from the console. Something fantastic and unbelievable niggles at the edge of his subconscious, just out of reach, but after a moment he realizes it’s not important right now.

What _is_ important is the undeniable hope that surges through his body and fills the shattered parts of his mind with an unfamiliar peace. 

The Doctor shakes his head and plops down next to Rose, grabbing her hand and threading his fingers through hers, the action natural and… right. Suddenly, an errant memory of a forgotten place crosses his mind – a beautiful place, a sea of frozen waves and ice – and he’s consumed with the idea to take Rose there. He knows she’ll love it, and he can’t wait to see the smile on her face when her eyes look upon yet another new world. 

“Rose, I know where we’re going next,” he says. “You’ll love it.”

“Oh?” Her grip on his hand tightens, and she bumps into his arm. “As long as you’re with me, I know I will.”


End file.
